C7W. 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

PRESENTED  BY 

PROF.  CHARLES  A.  KOFOID  AND 
MRS.  PRUDENCE  W.  KOFOID 


I 


THE 


GREAT      TREE 


ON 


BOSTON     COMMON. 


BY 


J.    C.  WARREN,   M.D., 


PRESIDENT      OF      THE      BOSTON      SOCIETY      OF      NATURAL      HISTORY. 


BOSTON: 

PRINTED   BY  JOHN  WILSON  &  SON, 

22,   SCHOOL  STREET. 

1855. 


r  73 

,a£ 

CrU/3 


THE 


GREAT  TREE  ON  THE  COMMON. 


AT  a  meeting  of  the  BOSTON  SOCIETY  OF  NATURAL 
HISTORY  some  time  since,  the  age  of  the  large  elm  on 
Boston  Common  became  accidentally  a  subject  of  dis 
cussion.  On  this  discussion,  it  appeared  there  was 
some  difference  of  opinion,  which  led  the  writer  of 
these  remarks  to  make  inquiry  into  the  facts,  and 
endeavor  to  ascertain  the  age  of  the  tree.  This  in 
quiry  seems  to  be  of  no  great  importance  at  first 
view;  but,  independently  of  serving  for  the  gratifica 
tion  of  a  proper  curiosity,  it  may  assist  us  in  estab 
lishing  the  period  of  the  duration  of  this  valuable 
ornament  to  our  country. 

We  propose,  then,  to  notice  this  tree,  not  because 
it  is  a  larger  tree  than  any  other  in  the  country,  nor 
because  it  is  older  or  taller.  The  Aspinwall  elm  has 


M363170 


a  greater  diameter;  there  have  been  a  number  of 
trees,  cut  down  from  time  to  time,  which  have  been 
thought  to  have  a  greater  age;  and  the  elm  on 
Pittsfield  Common,  as  we  are  informed  by  Professor 
Holmes,  is  a  hundred  and  fourteen  feet  before  the 
first  branch  is  given  off:  of  course,  it  is  taller.  This 
tree  is  an  object  of  interest,  from  the  fact  of  its  being 
placed  in  the  centre  of  Boston  Common,  and  thence 
having  attracted  the  attention  of  every  native  Bos- 
tonian.  It  is  also  interesting  for  other  reasons.  It 
has  not  only  escaped  the  blasts  which  have  occa 
sionally  threatened  to  annihilate  it,  but  the  more 
alarming  threats  of  destruction  from  a  British  army 
encamped  around  it  suffering  under  the  severity  of  a 
winter's  exposure.  Thanks  are  due  from  the  present 
and  succeeding  generations  to  General  Gage,  the 
commander  of  that  army,  for  having  preserved  this 
and  other  valuable  trees  in  Boston  from  being  em 
ployed  in  protecting  his  troops  against  the  severity  of 
the  climate. 

It  was  the  frequent  scene,  and  in  some  measure 
the  instrument,  of  inflicting  vengeance  on  those 
whom  popular  indignation,  whether  justly  or  not, 
thought  proper  to  stigmatize  and  terrify  by  hanging 
or  burning  in  effigy.  The  writer  was  witness,  and 


in  some  degree  an  adverse  actor,  in  a  scene  of  this 
kind  during  the  political  riots  of  1806.  At  a  later 
period,  for  many  months,  it  had  to  withstand  the 
dangers  from  the  little  army  encamped  around  it, 
destined  to  protect  the  town  in  the  war  of  1812. 
Many  tumultuous  scenes  have  endangered  its  exist 
ence  on  the  annual  recurrence  of  Election  and  Inde 
pendence  days,  when  there  was  no  restraint  in  the 
public  use  of  stimulants,  which  on  those  occasions 
so  often  drove  men  to  madness,  bloodshed,  and  all 
kinds  of  excesses.  These  circumstances  will  perhaps 
be  thought  sufficient  to  justify  the  attention  we  have 
bestowed  on  it. 

A  drawing  has  been  introduced  to  give  an  idea  of 
its  present  appearance  to  a  succeeding  generation. 
The  map  was  inserted  to  show,  that  in  1722  this  tree 
was  represented  as  the  largest  tree  in  Boston :  it  is  a 
diminished  copy  of  the  earliest  plan  of  Boston,  viz., 
that  of  Capt.  John  Bonner,  published  in  1722.  This 
gentleman  had  previously  sketched  some  portions  of 
the  wharves  in  the  proximity  of  Long  Wharf.  The 
sketches,  though  valuable,  included  no  part  of  Boston 
but  the  wharves  already  mentioned ;  and  the  plan  of 
1722  is  undoubtedly  the  earliest  complete  one.  The 
only  copy  of  it  which  existed  for  many  years  within 


my  knowledge  was  in  the  possession  of  Joseph  Peirce, 
Esq.,  of  which  I  obtained  a  fac-simile  to  be  drawn 
by  a  lady  of  Boston  nearly  forty  years  ago.  In 
1835,  Mr.  George  H.  Smith  reprinted  Bonner's  plan, 
which  corresponds  with  mine,  and  proves  the  exact 
ness  of  the  drawing.  The  diminished  map  is  an 
exact  copy  of  Capt.  Bonner's ;  some  trees,  too  small 
for  representation  in  a  diminished  view,  only  being 
omitted.  The  Great  Tree,  and  two  trees  at  the  head 
of  Park  Street,  are  well  represented  in  their  propor 
tion  to  co-existing  trees  and  to  each  other.  • 


This  tree  is  an  American  Elm,  belonging  to  a 
species  admired  and  cultivated  abroad  for  its  grace 
fully  pendent  branches.  It  is  known  by  the  most 
ancient  surviving  inhabitants  of  Boston  as  THE 
GREAT  TREE.  Citizens,  who  were  of  advanced 
age  in  the  youth  of  those  who  are  now  the  oldest 
inhabitants,  knew  it  equally  as  THE  GREAT 
TREE. 

The  writer  of  this,  having  always  lived  in  the  vici 
nity  of  the  Common,  where  it  is  situated,  and  for 
half  a  century  within  sight  of  it,  has  a  distinct  recol 
lection  of  its  appearance  for  about  seventy  years. 


When  he  first  knew  it,  it  bore  strong  marks  of  de 
crepitude  and  approaching  dissolution.  There  was 
a  large  orifice  in  the  bark  of  its  trunk,  through 
which  a  boy,  eight  or  nine  years  old,  could  creep  into 
its  cavity;  and  in  a  picture  wrought  in  1755  by  Miss 
Hannah  Otis,  aunt  of  the  late  distinguished  orator 
and  statesman,  Harrison  G.  Otis,  the  same  orifice  is 
also  represented,  —  thus  adding  thirty  years  to  its 
known  period  of  decrepitude. 

The  interior  of  the  trunk  was  rotten,  and  much  of 
it  had  disappeared.  The  aperture  was  from  two  to 
three  feet  in  length,  and  about  a  foot  in  breadth.  For 
many  years,  it  was  neglected ;  but  when,  in  process  of 
time,  the  spirit  of  improvement  extended  to  its  part 
of  the  Common,  the  edges  of  the  aperture  were  pro 
tected  by  a  mixture  of  clay  and  other  substances,  and 
the  exterior  covered  by  canvas  fastened  around  it.  In 
consequence  of  these  attentions,  the  parts  have  been 
regenerated;  and  the  opening,  so  far  as  can  be  as 
certained,  filled  and  obliterated.*  We  presume  the 

*  The  same  process  is  now  in  successful  operation  in  two  American  elms 
remaining  in  Park  Street.  The  bark  on  the  side  towards  the  street  was  torn 
off  by  the  passage  of  carriages.  To  accomplish  their  recovery,  the  trees  were 
first  guarded  by  forming  a  sideway  with  raised  stones  ;  and  the  wound,  having 
been  seasonably  protected  by  a  covering,  has  gradually  healed,  and  is  now 
reduced  to  a  third  part  of  its  original  dimensions.  The  trees,  in  the  mean 
time,  have  increased  a  quarter  part  in  size. 


8 


trunk  to  be  weakened ;  and,  if  the  tree  possessed  all 
its  original  branches,  there  would  be  danger  of  its 
being  overturned  by  the  wind.  To  what  extent  the 
interior  has  been  repaired,  it  is  impossible  to  deter 
mine  ;  but  that  a  portion  of  the  cavity  may  have  been 
obliterated  by  the  formation  of  new  woody  fibre,  is 
demonstrable  by  a  specimen  which  happens  to  present 
itself  at  the  moment  of  writing  this.  A  violent  wind 
storm,  which  occurred  on  Sunday,  June  10,  1855, 
tore  oif  a  hollow  branch  of  a  tree  in  the  Hospital 
grounds ;  by  which  it  appeared  that  the  edges  of  the 
aperture  were  coated  with  bark,  and  this  bark  was 
supported  by  new  woody  fibre  which  had  lately  been 
generated  by  the  leaves,  and  was  thus  gradually  clos 
ing  up  the  cavity. 

Standing  alone  (as  it  has  done),  and  unprotected 
by  trees  or  houses,  it  has  frequently  been  attacked  by 
storms,  and  large  branches  torn  oif.  In  the  month  of 
June,  1831,  a  violent  storm  partially  separated  four 
large  limbs,  and  so  far  detached  them  that  they 
rested  on  the  ground.  Mr.  James  A.  Sutton,  now 
Master  Block  Maker  at  the  Navy  Yard,  Charlestown 
(then  apprentice  to  Mr.  Daniel  Adams,  Pump  and 
Block  Maker),  informs  me  that  he  was  sent  with  a 
party  of  apprentices  and  citizens  to  endeavor  to  rein- 


state  the  prostrate  limbs  in  their  natural  situation. 
By  judicious  efforts,  they  succeeded  in  raising  and 
bolting  them  together.  The  bolts  are  still  visible, 
and  afford  the  only  indications  of  these  limbs  having 
been  separated,  as  they  appear  now  at  the  end  of 
twenty-three  years  to  be  completely  united. 

The  branches,  however,  are  greatly  diminished  in 
number,  especially  on  the  south-east  side,  which  has 
suffered  most  from  storms ;  and  their  beautifully  pen 
dent  character  is  diminished,  so  that  they  no  longer 
sweep  the  surface  of  the  ground.  But,  although 
worn  by  the  storms  of  ages,  it  is  still  a  magnificent 
object.  No  doubt  its  peculiar  situation  has  contri 
buted  to  its  growth,  preservation,  and  renovation ;  for 
it  stands  in  a  rich  hollow,  near  a  permanent  pond  of 
water  situated  a  little  higher  than  its  roots.  In  1844, 
it  was  measured  by  the  distinguished  botanists, 
George  B.  Emerson,  Esq.,  and  Professor  Asa  Gray 
(vide  "  A  Report  on  the  Trees  and  Shrubs  growing 
naturally  in  Mass/');  at  which  time  its  measurement 
was  as  follows:  "At  the  ground,  23  ft.  6  in. ;  at 
three  feet,  17  ft.  11  in. ;  and  at  five  feet,  16  ft.  1  in." 
Mr.  Chesbrough,  City  Engineer,  having  recently  mea 
sured  this  tree  at  our  request,  gives  the  dimensions 
as  it  now  stands,  viz. :  "  Height,  72J  ft. ;  height  of 

2 


10 

first  branch  from  the  ground,  16  J  ft. ;  girth,  one  foot 
above  the  ground,  22J  ft. ;  girth,  four  feet  above  the 
ground,  17  ft;  average  diameter  of  greatest  extent 
of  branches,  101  ft." 

The  age  and  origin  of  this  tree  are  matters  of 
much  interest  to  Bostonians.  In  a  map  in  my  pos 
session,  published  during  the  administration  of  Go 
vernor  Burnett,  beautifully  engraved  and  having  the 
date  of  1729,  the  Great  Tree  stands,  as  now,  insula 
ted  from  other  trees :  near  it  is  the  Pond,  the  ancient 
springs  of  which  are  now  aided  by  a  noble  fountain 
of  Cochituate  water.  At  a  short  distance  westward 
is  represented  the  Powder  Magazine,  placed  on  a 
small  well-known  eminence,  which,  during  the  siege 
of  Boston,  was  the  seat  of  a  British  fortification.  In 
another  plan  of  Boston  still  older,  1722,  a  copy  of 
which  accompanies  this  work,  it  is  again  found  in  the 
same  situation,  an  insulated  tree,  comparatively  of 
great  size.  From  its.  conspicuous  appearance  on  the 
plans,  we  infer  that  it  might  have  been  more  than  a 
hundred  years  old  at  that  time;  and,  of  course,  that 
it  took  its  origin  previous  to  the  establishment  of 
Governor  Winthrop  in  Boston  in  1630,  or  of  Mr. 
William  Blackstone  before  that  period. 

Some  persons  have  thought,  and  it  has  been  stated 


11 

in  the  "Boston  Commercial  Gazette"  of  April  25, 
1825,  but  on  what  authority  is  not  mentioned,  that 
the  tree  was  planted  in  1670  by  Capt.  Henchman,  an 
officer  who  had  distinguished  himself  in  the  Indian 
wars.  Capt.  H.  was  a  member  of  the  Ancient  and 
Honorable  Artillery  Company,  an  ancestor  of  Gover 
nor  Hancock ;  and  the  statement  says,  that  he  planted 
this  tree  to  shelter  the  Company  during  their  parades 
on  the  Common.  Many  years  ago,  a  venerable  man 
and  particular  friend  of  mine,  whom  I  have  always 
supposed  to  be  the  author  of  the  published  account, 
made  the  same  statement  in  the  presence  of  a  num 
ber  of  gentlemen.  I  took  occasion  to  inform  him, 
that  this  was  probably  a  mistake ;  and,  being  shown 
the  old  plans  of  Boston,  he  appeared  to  be  convinced 
of  his  error,  and  never  repeated  the  story  within  my 
knowledge,  though  I  conversed  with  him  on  the  sub 
ject  afterwards.  I  presume  that  he  had  no  authority, 
excepting  a  report  emanating  from  a  lady  who  was  a 
near  relation  of  a  descendant  of  Captain  Henchman. 
There  appears  to  be  no  sufficient  foundation  for  this 
belief:  if  there  is  any  good  authority  for  the  report, 
either  traditionary  or  recorded,  I  am  thus  far  unable, 
after  diligent  inquiry,  to  satisfy  myself  or  any  one 
else  of  its  authenticity.  It  would  seem  also  highly 


12 

improbable  that  Captain  Henchman  or  our  earlier 
ancestors  should  have  planted  a  tree  for  shelter  in 
a  situation  so  remote  as  that  of  this  tree  formerly 
was. 

In  the  two  plans  of  Boston,  1722  and  1729,  it  is 
always  represented  as  a  great  tree ;  i.  e.,  greater  than 
any  other  tree  co-existing  on  these  plans.  There 
were  within  the  memory  of  living  persons  two  or 
three  other  trees  of  extraordinary  magnitude.  Two 
of  these  stood  at  the  head  of  Park  Street  (vide 
Map),  in  what  is  now  the  Carriage-way :  they,  how 
ever,  were  obviously  not  of  so  great  size.  These 
two  trees  are  not  to  be  confounded  with  the  two  now 
standing  in  Park  Street  already  mentioned,  and  which 
are  also  spoken  of  hereafter.  If,  then,  this  tree  was  a 
great  tree  in  1729  and  1722,  it  could  not  have  been 
planted  in  1670;  for  this  would  allow  only  fifty-two 
years  for  its  growth.  Its  size  and  other  characters 
would  have  required  more  than  double  that  time  at 
the  earliest  period  of  its  representation. 

The  two  plans  above  mentioned  afford  an  opportu 
nity  of  comparing  the  growth  of  well-known  existing 
trees  with  the  other,  though  they  are  not  perhaps 
of  exactly  the  same  species.  The  trees  in  the  Little 
Mall,  so  called,  were  planted  by  Colonel  Adino  Pad- 


13 

dock  in  1770.*  They  are,  of  course,  more  than  eighty 
years  old ;  and  these  trees  are  not  so  large  as  the 
earliest  recollections  of  the  Great  Tree  by  persons 
now  living.  The  trees  in  the  Great  Mall  were 
planted,  as  appears  from  the  plans,  between  the  years 
1722  and  1729.  Those  of  them  which  remain  are 
about  one  hundred  and  thirty  years  old,  but  have  not 
the  size  of  the  Great  Tree  at  the  period  of  its  notice, 
on  the  earliest  plan. 

It  may  be  objected,  that  the  growth  of  the  Ameri 
can  elm  is  very  rapid ;  and  that  the  tree,  if  planted  in 
1670,  as  is  believed  by  some,  if  it  had  attained  five  or 
six  years  before  being  transplanted,  might,  in  a  period 
of  fifty-two  years  more,  reach  a  size  which  would 
entitle  it  to  a  respectable  representation  on  a  map 
of  Boston.  In  order  to  determine  the  probability  of 
such  a  growth,  I  have  examined  elms  on  my  own 
place  in  Brookline,  whose  ages  were  from  ten  to  sixty 
years.  The  largest  and  oldest  individual  of  these, 
planted  in  the  year  1798,  is  six  feet  in  circumference 

*  Two  of  the  walks  in  Boston  were  formerly  designated  by  the  names, 
"Great  Mall"  and  "  Little  Mall."  The  "Great  Mall"  borders  the  eastern 
edge  of  the  Common ;  and  the  "  Little  Mall,"  the  eastern  edge  of  the 
Granary  Burying-ground.  The  last  named  was  planted  with  English 
elms  by  Col.  Paddock  ;  the  other,  about  fifty  years  previously,  with  a  mixture 
of  elms  and  buttonwoods  (platanus  occidentalis}.  Mr.  Paddock  was  a  loyal 
ist,  left  Boston  in  the  year  1776,  and  settled  in  Nova  Scotia,  where  his 
descendants  live  and  nourish. 


14 


at  four  feet  from  the  surface  of  the  ground :  a  dozen 
others,  of  the  same  age,  have  not  more  than  two-thirds 
of  these  dimensions.  An  account  of  an  elm  situated 
in  Ware,  in  this  State,  has  been  published  in  the  news 
papers,  which  is  said  to  be  about  fifty  years  old,  and 
has  obtained  the  circumference  of  about  twelve  feet  at 
six  feet  from  the  ground ;  the  boughs  covering  an  area 
whose  circumference  is  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet.  The  statement,  however,  is  not  made  with  any 
authority,  and  the  facts  are  mentioned  rather  too 
loosely  to  form  a  ground  of  any  important  deduction. 
Having  lived,  as  before  intimated,  on  the  edge  of 
the  Common  for  nearly  fifty  years,  my  life  has  been 
long  enough  to  notice  the  growth  of  some  of  its 
American  elms.  President  Quincy  in  1824  planted 
two  rows  of  elms  in  Park-street  Mall.  These  trees, 
thirty  years  of  age,  average  in  circumference  less 
than  four  feet,  in  diameter  a  foot  and  a  third.  In 
Park  Street,  a  line  of  elms  was  planted  some  years 
before  I  came  to  live  there.  This  plantation,  as  far 
I  can  ascertain,  was  made  in  consequence  of  a  dona 
tion  to  the  town  of  a  sum  intended  to  improve  the 
Common  and  its  vicinity  By  Gov.  Hancock,  Gov. 
Bowdoin,  Thomas  Russell,  Esq.,  and  others,  proba 
bly  (as  the  Hancock  family  think)  about  the  year 


15 


1786.  The  two  trees  remaining  of  this  line  measure, 
one  of  them,  7  ft.  3  in. ;  the  other,  6  ft.  4J  in.,  in 
circumference ;  and,  though  more  than  sixty  years  old, 
they  have  thus  but  little  over  two  feet  in  diameter, 
and  cannot  be  considered  as  great  trees.  The  distin 
guished  gentleman  named  above,  President  Quincy, 
has  on  his  ancestral  seat  at  Quincy  two  walks  of 
these  trees  planted  within  his  knowledge.  One  of 
these  was  set  out  in  the  year  1790,  being  of  the 
girth  usually  attained  by  the  upland  elms  when  at 
the  height  of  ten  or  twelve  feet;  in  number  they 
were  about  two  hundred.  Of  these  elms,  at  four  feet 
from  the  ground,  five  of  the  largest  are  now,  after  a 
period  of  nearly  sixty-five  years,  of  the  average  girth 
of  5  ft.  8  in.  Five  of  the  smallest  average  in  girth 
4  ft.  2  in.  In  the  second  walk  set  out  in  1812,  at  the 
same  distance  from  the  ground,  four  of  the  largest  are 
in  girth  3  ft.  10  in. ;  four  of  the  smallest,  3  ft.  2  in. ; 
the  period  being  forty-three  years. 

We  may  conclude  then,  I  think,  that  the  growth 
between  1670  and  1722,  a  period  of  fifty-two  years, 
could  not  have  entitled  the  Great  Tree,  so  called, 
to  the  conspicuous  representation  it  has  on  Bon- 
ner's  map. 

The  history  of  other  aged  elms  might  perhaps  aid 


16 


us  in  elucidating  the  point  in  question.  There  is  one 
which  has  attracted  notice,  whose  age  may  be  deter 
mined  with  apparent  certainty:  it  is  the  Aspinwall 
elm  in  Brookline,  near  the  former  Smallpox  Hospi 
tal.  This  was  planted  in  1656,  and  must,  of  course, 
have  been  three  or  four  years  old  at  the  time  of  its 
transplantation,  so  that  at  the  present  time  it  is  at 
least  two  hundred  years  old.  Its  appearance  leads 
us  to  believe  it  may  live  at  least  a  hundred  years 
more ;  *  and  this  we  think  a  fair  age  to  assign  to  the 
American  elm  situated  in  favorable  circumstances,  so 
far  as  we  are  acquainted  with  its  history.  Whence 
we  conclude  there  is  nothing  improbable  in  the  belief 
that  the  Elm  on  Boston  Common  is  more  than  two 
hundred  years  old. 

But,  as  it  was  certainly  the  Great  Tree  in  1729 
and  1722,  we  may  indulge  the  belief,  that  it  sprang 
up  previous  to  the  settlement  of  Boston ;  that  it  cast 
its  protecting  shade  over  the  heads  of  our  earliest 
American  ancestors ;  and  that  even  the  native  inhabi- 

*  Since  writing  the  above  passage,  I  have  examined  this  tree,  and  find 
that  its  annual  foliage  has  been  almost  wholly  devoured  by  the  canker-worm, 
in  common  with  many  other  trees  in  the  low  land  of  Brookline.  It  appears 
at  this  time  like  a  frightful  skeleton  ;  and  there  is  a  question  whether  it  will 
ever  recover  from  the  shock  it  has  received.  In  its  death,  we  shall  have  to 
deplore  the  loss  of  one  of  the  finest  natural  ornaments  of  this  part  of  the 
country. 


17 

tant  of  the  soil  enjoyed  the  protection  of  its  wide- 
spreading  branches. 

This  tree,  therefore,  we  must  venerate  as  a  visible 
relic  of  the  Indian  Shawmut ;  for  all  its  other  na 
tive  trees  and  groves  have  been  long  since  prostrated  ; 
the  frail  and  transient  memorials  of  the  Aborigines 
have  vanished;  even  the  hills  of  Trimountain  can 
not  be  distinguished;  and  this  native  noble  elm 
remains  to  present  a  substantial  association  of  the 
existing  with  the  former  ages  of  Boston. 

The  present  active  and  intelligent  Mayor  of  our 
city,  Dr.  J.  V.  C.  Smith,  has  erected  a  handsome  iron 
fence  as  a  permanent  protection  to  this  valuable  relic 
of  the  early  days  of  the  city,  with  the  following 
inscription,  viz. :  — 

"THE    OLD    ELM. 

"  THIS  TREE  HAS  BEEN  STANDING  HERE  FOR  AN  UNKNOWN  PERIOD.      IT  IS 

BELIEVED  TO  HAVE  EXISTED  BEFORE  THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  BOSTON, 

BEING   FULL    GROWN   IN    1722.      EXHIBITED   MARKS  OF 

OLD  AGE  IN  1792,  AND  WAS  NEARLY  DESTROYED 

BY    A    STORM    IN    1832.       PROTECTED 

BY    AN    IRON    ENCLOSURE 

IN    1854. 

«J.    V.    C.    SMITH, 
3 


19 


NOTES 


A  POETIC  imagination  might  present  striking  pictures  of  the 
various  scenes  which  have  occurred  in  the  vicinity  of  this 
tree,  from  the  period  when  it  was  surrounded  by  the  native 
sons  of  the  soil  to  that  which  was  exhibited  when  the  Com 
mon  shone  with  the  brilliant  armor  of  British  troops  in  1768 
and  1775.  Among  the  multitude  of  interesting  occurrences 
which  have  distinguished  the  spot  where  it  stands,  one  or 
two  may  be  mentioned. 

The  earliest  of  these,  drawn  from  "The  History  of 
Boston,  by  Samuel  G.  Drake,  Esq.,"  is  in  the  following 
language:  —  "1676,  July  27.  Another  of  the  Nipmuck 
Sachems,  called  '  Sagamore  John,'  influenced  about  one 
hundred  and  sixty  Indians  to  surrender  at  Boston.  One 
among  them,  old  Matoonas,  he  brought  in  by  force,  being 
'bound  with  cords.'  He  was  immediately  condemned  to 
death ;  for  he  was  not  only  the  father  of  him  who  was  hung 
in  Boston  several  years  before,  but  he  was  charged  with 
being  the  first  to  commit  murder  in  Massachusetts  Colony 
in  this  war.  His  betrayer,  f  Sagamore  John,'  was  desirous 
that  he  and  his  men  might  be  the  executioners ;  wherefore 
Matoonas  was  carried  out  into  the  Common,  and  being  tied 
to  a  tree,  they  then  shot  him  to  death." 

There  is  a  curious  history  of  a  fatal  duel,  of  which  the 
ground  near  this  Tree  was  the  seat,  on  July  3d,  1728.  Two 
young  gentlemen  of  the  most  distinguished  families  in  the 


20 


town  were  supposed  to  have  disputed  for  the  possession  of  a 
young  lady,  whose  name  is  now  buried  in  forgetfulness. 
The  principal  actors  in  this  affair  were  Mr.  Benjamin  Wood- 
bridge,  a  descendant  of  the  family  whose  name  stands  first 
among  the  graduates  of  Harvard  College ;  the  other  was  Mr. 
Henry  Phillips,  of  a  family  not  less  distinguished ;  both  of 
them  were  about  twenty  years  old.  The  combat  took  place 
in  the  evening.  The  parties  contended  with  rapiers;  and 
"Woodbridge,  being  thrust  through  the  body,  lived  but  a 
short  time.  His  antagonist  fled,  and  took  refuge  in  a  Brit 
ish  ship  of  war  in  the  harbor,  which  safely  transported  him 
to  the  English  shores ;  where,  however,  he  could  not  escape 
from  his  own  recollections,  and  died  soon  after,  a  victim  to 
despair.  The  monument  of  Benjamin  Woodbridge  is  still 
to  be  seen  in  the  Granary  Burying-ground  at  a  short  dis 
tance  from  the  gate  on  the  south  side.  The  story  is  told  in 
a  very  interesting  way  by  the  distinguished  author,  "  The 
Sexton  of  the  Old  School,"  who  is  also  well  known  by 
the  signature  of  Sigma,  in  the  "  Boston  Evening  Transcript " 
for  April  25,  1851.  A  collection  of  the  valuable  researches 
of  this  author  into  a  distinct  volume  would  be  an  interesting 
and  important  acquisition. 


The  TOWS"  of 

BOSTON 


IN 

^ 


, '  -v 

Cap1.  <M>U  -X 


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